


An Acquired Taste

by wordslinger



Category: Free!
Genre: F/M, ice cream date au, with family angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-25
Packaged: 2019-06-15 21:29:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15421971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wordslinger/pseuds/wordslinger
Summary: Wherein Rin is not a jerk and comes home more often and Seijuro takes Gou out for some ice cream like the Very Good Boy he is.





	An Acquired Taste

**Author's Note:**

> For you, lovely tumblr anon. I'll edit this later. I've got a headache.

            Rin was beyond gracious at dinner. He complimented their mother _at length_ over every little aspect of her cooking, and even took the time to let her gush over her new flowerbox herb garden on the back windows. When asked about the family gravesite, Rin was appropriately somber and assured her he visited regularly.

            Gou enjoyed these soft moments with her family and tried not to let herself be annoyed with the facts. The ones she knew would bubble to the surface as soon as Rin followed her out the front door after dinner. She reached for the black jacket on the rack but found Rin already holding it out for her with a positively _flat_ expression.

            “Thanks, big brother,” she said with a smirk. Gou slid her arms through the sleeves and followed Rin outside. “You being here tonight really meant a lot to mom. You should come more often.”

            “I’m trying,” Rin muttered. When they reached the sidewalk, he turned to per and pulled the ends of her hair from the collar of her jacket. “Where are you off to, tonight?”

            Gou laughed. “You’re not fooling me, you know.”

            “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Rin flushed and directed his gaze down the street.

            “So you didn’t just happen to show up for dinner with me and mom on the same night I’m meeting Seijuro for our second _real_ date?” Gou fluffed her hair and slid her arm through Rin’s. She pulled him gently down the narrow street toward the train station where he’d, _hopefully,_ catch his route back to school.

            “It was a coincidence.”

            “Sure thing, big brother.” Gou sighed and let her head fall to Rin’s shoulder. “In all seriousness, mom really would love to see you more. I would, too.”

            “You see me plenty.”

            “I don’t want to share you with your team, Rin. I want us to be a _family.”_

            “I’m trying.”

            “I know,” she said brightly. “Try harder, though, okay?” They walked in silence for several blocks before Rin cleared his throat.

            “He’s not making you go to him, is he? Because –”

            “Of course not!” Gou laughed lightly. “He’s always offering to come to me. I think he thinks that’s why I’m so willing to go out with him.” Rin’s eyes jerked down to her incredulously. Gou gave into her most typical teenage girl sigh. “But he’s wrong.”

            “What do you like about that guy anyway? He’s big, and loud, and –”

            “He’s incredibly sweet and attentive. I like that he makes me feel like I’m not jumping through hoops for scraps of his time.”

            “Gou –”

            “Oh, stop it, Rin. Don’t make it about _you._ He’s _always_ excited to see me and I like it. I’m allowed to like things.”

            “Did it have to be my captain, though?”

            “Get over it, Rin.”

            The train platform wasn’t as crowded as it had been when she’d met him there earlier that day. Gou stepped in front of him and squeezed his arm before releasing him.

            “It really was good to see you at home, big brother.”

            “Yeah, yeah,” he said with an actual grin. “It was nice to be home. I promise I’ll come again this week.” Rin’s eyes bounced around the platform and Gou laughed softly. He was procrastinating. Finally he sighed and his shoulders fell. “Alright, well, if he does anything weird –”

            “He _won’t.”_

            “But if he _does_ I want you to call me. _Immediately.”_

            The train chuffed and Gou pressed her palms against Rin’s chest. “Go _on,_ Rin.”

            “Okay, okay.” Rin stepped backwards into the car. “So where’s he taking you anyway?”

            “The ice cream shop near the school.” Rin’s mouth curved downward into a frown just as the doors started to slide shut.

            “But you can’t –”

            Gou smiled and waved as his words were cut off by the closing doors. She knew what he was about to say and hearing them wouldn’t have made any difference.

            _“Gou!”_ Seijuro’s excited voice was loud enough to hear over the departing train. Gou turned away from the tracks and smiled. She couldn’t help her blush.

            “Seijuro! You made it!”

            “Of course I did!” His smile made her cheeks feel like they might catch fire. “You look really cute in that jacket, by the way.”

            “Thanks,” she said with a grin. “You aren’t missing it are you?”

            “Nope!” He took her hand and pulled her gently into his side. “I’m the captain and have two others just like it.”

            “Good. I think I’m a little attached to it.” Gou liked the way his face lit up. She liked the way he _glowed_ all the time. Together they left the train station and took the walk to the ice cream shop at a slow pace. “I hope the train wasn’t too crowded for you.”

            “It wasn’t,” he said, squeezing her hand. “But even if it had been, it would’ve been worth it.”

            Gou’s heart flew away.

* * *

 

            The ice cream shop was small but Gou didn’t intend for them to stay. She wanted to take him to the boardwalk so they could enjoy the sunset.

            “What kind is your favorite?” Seijuro asked softly in her ear.

            “The pistachio mint.”

            “That’s an interesting combination.”

            Gou blushed. “Well, I can’t have dairy. I like the pistachio better than the rice or soy.”

            “What?” Seijuro’s mouth dropped open for only a moment before he pressed his lips together in chagrin. “I didn’t know you had a milk allergy. I wouldn’t have suggested this place if I’d known. I’m so sorry!”

            “Don’t be!” Gou smiled and closed her hand around his arm. “I think as long as I stay away from those matcha lattes with double milk you love so much, I’ll be fine.” His cheeks flushed pink.

            “I’ll remember.”

            “So what kind do _you_ like best?” Gou turned back to the row of ice cream bins beyond a pane of glass.

            “I have a bit of a sweet tooth, I think. I like the strawberry. It’s a little plain but –”

            “It’s not _plain_ to like what you like.”

            Gou took her pistachio mint in a cup but Seijuro liked the sweet vanilla cone. He really _did_ have a sweet tooth.

* * *

 

            When they returned to the street and headed for the coast, the air had cooled off. Gou almost wish she’d tied her hair back but it didn’t escape her notice that Seijuro seemed to get stuck on the long strands of it. His eyes followed the wispy strands anytime the breeze picked them up. Gou decided she _loved_ being the object of his fascination and affection. He made her feel important and valuable in a way the other boys in her life simply didn’t – and in a way Rin could never.

            “You want to try this last bite?” Gou offered him the plastic spoon before tossing her paper cup into a garbage bin. He grinned and took the spoon into his mouth. The face he made drew a bubbly laugher from somewhere inside of her. “Not what you were expecting?”

            “No, no!” he said, tossing away the spoon as quickly as possible. “It’s fine! Just…”

            “Non-dairy ice cream is an acquired taste,” Gou said, taking his hand again.

            The sun bled from one end of the horizon to the other and Gou slid her fingers through his. So many small things about him were adding up to something bigger that took up her whole heart.

* * *

 

            Even though Gou felt confident this date was only the second of _many_ she felt a knot of frustrated sadness lodge in her throat.

            “When can I see you again?” he asked, tucking a strand of wind-tousled hair behind one ear.

            “I think your schedule is more busy than mine.”

            “I’ll make time for you.”

            Gou smiled wider than maybe she should’ve. “I’ve got a night off on Thursday and another on Friday. Rin will be here on Saturday.”

            “I’ll clear my schedule.” His grin was, she assumed, just as dopey as hers. He _almost_ pulled away but Gou closed her hand around the front of his shirt in an iron grip and popped up on her toes for a kiss. After a half second of surprised, he seemed to ease into a melted, squishy state and returned her kisses.

            A voice announcing the train’s departure interrupted and Gou wished, again, for more time.

            “You know,” he whispered, kissing her again. “I think I’ve acquired the taste for pistachio mint.”

            “Have you?”

            “Yeah, I think I prefer it from your lips.” Seijuro kissed her a final time before stepping off the platform and into the train. Gou tried to be cool but she couldn’t stop herself from blushing furiously and pressing her palms to her cheeks as the train pulled away.


End file.
